MANCHESTER,  N.H.  MAYOR 
Valedictory,  1869 


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VALEDICTORY 


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HOX.  JAMES  A.  WESTON, 


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v  i:  i  N  T  K  D    r.  v     c  n  A  i:  1. 1:  s     F  .     LIVINGS  T  o  x , 
1869. 


VALEDICTORY 


OF    THE 


HON.  JAMES  A.  WESTON, 


TO 


DELIVERED 


BEFORE  THE  TWO  BRANCHES  IN  CONVENTION,  JANUAUY,  1809. 


PRINTED    BY    ORDER    OF    THE    CITY    COUNCIL. 


MANCHESTER,  N.  H. : 

PRINTED    BY    CHARLES    F.    LIVINGSTON. 
1869. 


r 


CITY    OP    MANCHESTER. 


The  Mayor's  Valedictory  Address. 


ORDERED,  That  three  hundred  copies  of  the  Valedictory  Address  of  Hon. 
JAMES  A.  WESTON,  Mayor,  delivered  this  day,  before  the  two  branches  of  the 
City  Council  in  convention,  be  printed  for  the  use  of  the  City  Council,  and 
that  his  Honor  the  Mayor  be  requested  to  furnish  a  copy  to  be  printed  in 
the  Annual  Reports. 

In  Convention  of  the  City  Council. 
Read  and  passed. 

JOSEPH  E.  BENNETT,  CITY  CLERK. 


ADDRESS. 


GENTLEMEN  OF  THE  CITY  COUNCIL  : 

The  period  for  which  we  assumed  the  trusts  imposed 
upon  us  one  year  ago  being  about  to  close,  it  seems  emi- 
nently proper,  and  not  without  precedent,  that  I  should 
present  a  brief  review  of  our  official  acts,  setting  forth 
what  has  been  accomplished  within  the  year,  with  a  state- 
ment of  the  condition  of  the  city  affairs,  as  the  man- 
agement thereof  is  relinquished  to  others.  Our  successors, 
who  are  to  carry  forward  the  enterprises  and  improvements 
now  in  progress,  are  fairly  entitled  to  this  information  ; 
and  it  is  a  matter  of  justice  to  us,  as  well  as  to  our  fellow 
citizens  generally,  that  such  a  statement  should  be  made. 

The  propriety  and  even  importance  of  this  course  can- 
not fail  to  commend  it  to  every  business  man ;  and  I  can 
but  hope  that  it  will  be  considered  the  duty  of  each  suc- 
ceoding  city  council,  to  transmit  to  its  successors  an  ex- 
plicit account  of  the  condition  of  affairs  at  the  expiration 
of  its  term  of  office. 


FINANCE. 

On  the  first  day  of  January,  1868,  the  net  indebtedness  of  the 
city  as  stated  in  my  inaugural  address,  from  information  furnished 

by  the  City  Treasurer,  was  .  . $393,805  50 

The  following  statement  obtained  from  the 
same  source,  and  made  up  on  the  same 
basis,  shows  the  net  indebtedness  of  the 
city,  January  1,  1869, 369,112  24 


Being  a  decrease    or   reduction    of  the    debt  during 

the    year,  of $24,693  26 

The  statement  from  the  Treasurer's  books  is  as  follows : 

Amount  of  funded  debt,  January   1,  1868, $351,900  00 

Amount  of  temporary  loan,  January  1, 

1868, $35,230  00 

Amount  of  increase  during  the  year,  .  .   .  2,071  00 


Present  amount  of  temporary  loan 37,301  00 

Estimated  amount  of  interest  now  due,  $10,000  00 

Unpaid  bills  now  due 15,156  08 

25,156  08 


Total  debt  and  interest  January   1,  1869, $414,357  08 

Deduct  amount  of  cash  on  hand,  .   .   .  $42,794  85 

Deduct  note  due  on  Barrett  place 75  00 

Deduct  notes  due  for  lots  sold  from  City 

Farm, 2,375  49 

Amounting  to  $45,245  34 


Leaving  the  net  indebtedness,  January  1,  1869,  .  .  $369,111   74 


Included  in  the  foregoing  statement  is  the  sum  of 
$5,468.43,  paid  for  furnishing  and  fitting  up  the  court 
house  and  lot,  which  was  authorized  to  be  met  by  loan  ; 
but  was  taken  from  the  tax  receipts.  In  all,  the  sum  of 
$15,994.16  has  been  paid  from  tax  receipts,  on  account  of 
the  court  house,  above  the  sum  raised  by  loan,  rather 
than  hire  money,  while  sufficient  funds  were  remaining  in 
the  treasury.  And  notwithstanding  this,  there  is  now  in 
the  city  treasury,  the  sum  of  $42,794.85,  which  is  a 
larger  cash  balance  than  was  ever  before  on  hand  at  the 
close  of  any  municipal  year. 

No  bills  have  been  contracted  for  our  successors  to  pro- 
vide for,  and  efforts  having  been  made  by  advertising  in 
the  daily  papers  and  otherwise,  to  have  every  outstanding 
claim  presented  for  payment  at  the  close  of  tho  year,  it  is 
confidently  believed  that  the  demands  against  the  city  are 
adjusted  as  fully  as  it  is  practicable  to  do,  at  any  given 
time. 

The  report  of  the  joint  standing  committee  on  finance 
will  reveal  the  gratifying  fact  that  there  is  not  a  single  ac- 
count overdrawn,  while  many  of  them  will  show  large 
unexpended  balances. 


SEWERS    AND    DRAINS. 

As  a  part  of  a  systematic  plan  of  sewerage  recom- 
mended in  Sladc's  report,  the  proposed  new  sewer  in  Elm 
street  has  been  commenced,  and  extended  from  Central 
to  Merrimuck  street,  a  distance  of  about  five  hundred 
feet.  This  sewer  is  of  brick,  three  feet  high  by  two  feet 
wide  in  the  clear,  and  laid  at  such  a  grade  as  will,  in  con- 
nection with  the  old  sewer,  furnish  ample  means  of 
drainage  for  the  surface  water,  as  well  as  for  sink  drains 
and  cellars. 

A  cement  sewer  has  also  been  laid,  which  discharges 
into  this  new  sewer,  and  extends  from  Merrimack  to 
Spring  street,  through  the  back  street  west  of  Elm  street, 
a  distance  of  about  sixteen  hundred  feet.  Several  other 
sewers  of  less  magnitude  have  besn  constructed  in  various 
parts  of  the  city. 

The  claims  which  were  found  hanging  over  the  city  for 
damage  to  property  in  consequence  of  alleged  defects 
and  obstructions  in  the  stone  culvert  leading  from  Hano- 
ver to  Merrimack  squares,  induced  a  thorough  examina- 
tion into  the  case.  The  result  was  a  compromise  between 
the  parties,  by  which  those  who  were  damaged  relinquished 
one  third  part  of  their  claims  on  the  condition  that  the 
city  would  enlarge  and  repair  the  culvert  agreeably  to 
certain  stipulations.  This  has  been  accomplished  to  the 


satisfaction  of  all  concerned.  The  claims  have  all  been 
adjusted  and  paid,  and  any  liability  of  the  city  on  account 
of  any  further  damage  arising  from  a  like  cause,  has 
ceased  beyond  question. 

•Much  inconvenience  having  arisen,  and  imncessary  ex- 
pense incurred  from  a  want  of  knowledge  as  to  the  loca- 
tion, capacity,  &c.,  of  existing  sewers,  a  survey  has  been 
made,  and  a  plan  is  in  progress  which  is  designed  to 
furnish  all  the  desired  information. 

HIGHWAYS. 

The  new  highways  constructed  during  the  current  year 
are  as  follows  :  The  extension  of  Union  street,  north  ; 
the  extension  of  Merrimack  street  from  Hall  street  to  its 
intersection  with  Hanover  street ;  Willow  and  Young 
streets,  near  the  jail ;  Granite  street  from  Canal  to  Elm 
street,  and  Bridge  street  from  Hall  street  through  the 
city  farm  to  the  Mammoth  road.  In  consequence  of  the 
unfavorable  weather  in  the  fall,  the  work  on  Nashua,  Ash, 
and  Walnut  streets  was  not  quite  completed.  Some  addi- 
tional work  will  also  bo  necessary  on  Bridge  street  the- 
coming  season. 

The  sidewalk  on  the  north  side  of  Hanover  street  has 
been  widened  four  feet,  from  Elm  cast  back  street  to 
Union  street,  and  a  walk  of  concrete  or  brick  laid  the- 
entire  distance  at  the  expense  of  the  city.  The  sidewalk 


10 


on  the  south  side  of  Hanover  square  has  also  been 
widened  and  a  concrete  pavement  laid  to  make  it  corres- 
pond with  that  below.  One  half  the  expense  of  the  last 
named  walk,  exclusive  of  grading,  was  contributed  by 
residents  in  that  vicinity.  The  total  expense  incurred  in 
the  construction  of  the  streets  and  walks  above  named,  is 
about  $4000.  The  plan  of  laying  concrete  walks  in  the 
commons,  has  been  inaugurated  by  the  construction  of 
two  walks  in  Concord  square. 

Early  in  the  season  Granite  bridge  was  thoroughly 
ropla.nked,  and  otherwise  repaired,  and  painted.  The 
plank  used  were  of  oak,  four  and  a  half  inches  thick ; 
and,  although  the  first  cost  of  this  material  was  consid- 
erably more  than  other  kinds  would  have  been,  it  is 
believed  the  lino  of  true  economy  was  adopted. 

CITY       FARM. 

A  complete  survey  and  plan  of  the  city  form  has  been 
made,  and  the  westerly  portion  of  the  same  divided  into 
house  lots,  by  projecting  the  necessary  streets.  Seven  of 
these  lots  have  already  been  sold  and  conveyed,  at  prices 
fixed  by  your  committee,  amounting  to  the  sum  of 
$3,167.34.  About  seventeen  acres  in  all  have  been 
offered  for  sale,  which,  at  the  prices  agreed  upon,  will 
an  mi  i  ni  to  about  $11,000.  The  opening  of  Bridge 


11 


street    was    mainly    for   the    purpose  of  bringing    these 
lands  into  the  market. 

RESERVOIRS. 

The  construction  of  two  reservoirs  in  sections  of 
the  city,  destitute  of  these  facilities  for  the  extinguish- 
ment of  fires,  has  contributed  much  to  the  safety  of 
property  in  the  neighborhood  of  their  location.  Both  of 
them  are  built  entirely  of  stone,  in  the  most  durable 
manner.  The  one  on  Wilson  street,  in  Janesville,  is 
27x6x0  feet,  in  the  clear,  and  being  situated  on  a  never 
failing  brook  is  always  full  of  water.  The  other,  situated 
on  Merrimack  street  near  Hall  street,  is  in  the  clear,  40x 
6xG  feet,  which  it  is  thought  will  furnish  a  supply  of  water 
adequate  to  any  demand  likely  to  occur  in  that  locality. 

LIBRARY    BUILDING. 

The  city  council  having  made  an  appropriation  towards 
the  erection  of  a  library  building,  a  committee  was  ap- 
pointed sometime  in  the  summer  months,  with  authority 
to  procure  plans,  specifications  and  estimates  of  such  a 
building  as  in  their  judgment  would  meet  the  present  and 
prospective  requirements  of  the  city,  and  report  to  the 
city  council.  Subsequently,  the  committee  were  author- 
ized to  adopt  such  a  plan  as  they  deemed  advisable,  and 


12 


to  proceed  with  the  work  so  far  as  to  lay  the  foundation. 
After  a  careful  consideration  of  the  whole  matter,  a  plan 
was  agreed  upon  with  much  unanimity.  The  building 
proposed  is  in  the  gothic  style  of  architecture,  49x90  feet, 
with  a  tower  at  the  southwest  corner.  It  has  a  high- 
posted  basement,  to  be  used  for  miscellaneous  purposes, 
and  one  principal  story,  containing  a  waiting  room, 
librarian's  rooms,  and  a  library  room  of  sufficient  size  to 
accommodate  44,000  volumes.  It  is  proposed  to  locate  the 
building  on  the  lot  of  land  immediately  south  of  Franklin 
street  church,  having  a  frontage  on  Franklin  street  of  145 
feet.  The  south  side  of  the  lot  is  to  be  on  a  line  with  the 
passage  way  south  of  the  Methodist  church,  the  intention 
being  to  make  a  public  avenue  from  Elrn  street  to 
Franklin  street,  for  foot  passengers  through  this  walk. 

This  lot  is  generously  donated  by  the  Amoskeag  Manu- 
facturing Company,  and  the  deed  is  ready  to  be  delivered 
us  soon  as  the  aforesaid  avenue  can  be  laid  out  as  a  public 
way.  Owing  to  unavoidable  delays  arising  from  various 
causes,  the  committee  wero  unable  to  make  any  progress 
with  the  foundations,  but  the  preliminaries  are  so  far  ad- 
vanced, that  the  work  may  be  commenced  early  the 
coming  season. 


POLICE    STATION. 

Agreeably  to  the  recommendation  contained  in  my  in- 
augural address,  some  progress  has  been  made  with  a 
view  to  procure  better  accommodations  for  the  police  de- 
partment. An  architect,  Mr.  G.  "W.  STEVENS,  has  been 
employed,  who  has  presented  a  plan  for  an  addition  to,  or 
an  extension  of  the  City  Hall  building  at  the  southwest 
corner.  It  is  proposed  to  make  the  structure  3Jx40  feet, 
one  story  high,  with  a  basement  all  finished  in  the  same 
style  of  architecture  as  the  main  building,  and  of  the 
same  kind  of  materials.  It  is  to  contain  rooms  for  the 
marshal,  and  a  watch  room  with  the  necessary  conven- 
iences ;  also  twenty  cells,  ten  in  the  basement  and  ten  in 
the  principal  story. 

•  CONCLUSION. 

I  have  thus  adverted  to  some  of  the  principal  topics 
relating  to  our  public  affairs,  which  have  been  the  subject 
of  our  deliberations  during  the  past  year.  Whatever 
success  has  resulted  from  our  labors,  has  in  a  large  degree 
been  owing  to  your  wisdom,  fidelity  and  cheerful  co- 
operation. As  a  reward  for  your  services  you  have  the 
approbation  of  your  fellow  citizens,  and  that  which  is 
higher  and  better  than  all,  the  consciousness  of  having 
honestly  endeavored  to  perform  your  duty. 


14 


The  prosperity  which  has  marked  the  progress  of  our 
city  throughout  the  year,  may  well  awaken  our  warmest 
gratitude  to  an  ever  kind  and  watchful  Providence. 
Peace  and  public  order  have  been  maintained  to  a  high 
degree  ;  no  pestilence  which  walketh  in  darkness  has  been 
suffered  to  come  within  our  borders ;  the  republic  has 
made  rapid  progress  in  recovering  from  the  effects  of  the 
dreadful  calamities  incident  to  the  long  and  bloody  war ; 
public  confidence  has  been  greatly  restored,  the  spirit  of 
enterprise  in  our  people  has  been  stimulated,  the  busy 
hum  of  industry  has  been  heard,  labor  has  been  rewarded, 
and  our  city  is  once  more  entering  upon  a  career  of  pros- 
perity with  renewed  vigor. 

GENTLEMEN  :  Before  we  separate,  allow  me  to  extend 
to  you  individually  my  sincere  and  heartfelt  thanks  for  the 
courtesy  and  kindness  which  has  ever  characterized  your 
conduct  in  all  relations  with  me.  Let  me  assure  you  that 
I  shall  never  cease  to  retain  pleasing  and  grateful  recollec- 
tions of  the  many  manifestations  of  your  generosity  and 
personal  regard  ;  and  that  wherever  your  lot  may  be  cast 
I  shall  always  cherish  an  ardent  wish  for  your  future 
success  and  happiness. 


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